


Goodbye, Kid

by livy_bear



Series: Tumblr Transfer Works [2]
Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Alternate Universe - Transcendence (Gravity Falls), Angst and Feels, Blood and Gore, Character Death, Gen, Major Character Injury, Originally Posted in 2015, Transcendence AU, this isnt super graphic or anything but if youre squeamish maybe not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:54:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27793396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/livy_bear/pseuds/livy_bear
Summary: Toby appeared in the open doorway. “MADDIE!” He yelled running to her.She was thrashing around again, reaching out for him. He grabbed her hand, but just barely, pulling her back towards him. Then seemingly out of nowhere there was another person in a dark cloak going for Toby.Maddie screamed again before the world went black around her.--based on a headcanon by thusmylife posted to the Transcendence AU tumblr that Toby died protecting Maddie(fic originally posted to tumblr in 2015)
Series: Tumblr Transfer Works [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2033389
Kudos: 7





	Goodbye, Kid

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I'm currently in the process of transferring old fic from tumblr to Ao3. This was originally posted in 2015, and uses original characters from the Transcendence AU on tumblr, that are not my inception. But if you're reading this you probably already know that.

Maddie felt she was much too old for a babysitter. She was twelve and practically a teen! Yet every time Dadcor had to go off on some very important summons–BAM–there was Toby. Not that she had any problems with Toby! He was practically her brother, and a huge sweetheart. She just really thought she could take care of herself.

Yet there she was sitting on the back porch, while Toby was inside making grilled cheese, and she was staring at the woods she really wished she could run through. But there were rules–not a lot of them, but they existed–and one of them was Do-Not-Go-Into-The-Woods-Without-An-Adult-Namely-Alcor. Maddie didn’t think the woods were that bad. Nothing dangerous ever went through them, probably due to some demon pizaz her dad had whipped up. They weren’t even a _little_ scary.

“What’re you thinking about?” Toby asked, passing a grilled cheese cut into triangles.

“The woods,” Maddie shrugged.

“Why the woods?”

“I’m not allowed to go in them without Dad.” She took a bite of her sandwich. “And I really want to.”

“Ask Alcor when he gets back.”

“It wouldn’t be the same.”

Toby laughed, reaching over to ruffle Maddie’s hair. “I can’t do anything to help. Sorry, kiddo.”

“Yeah okay,” She giggled, pushing her hair back into place.

“I’ll be right back, Mads.” He stood, nodding his head in the direction of the bathroom. Maddie smiled, letting him know she’d stay put.

Well. Sort of.

Once Toby had went back inside, Maddie walked to the edge of the yard. She was just a couple feet from the woods now, and she could almost feel it breathing. There were so many fun creatures in those woods, but she knew there were also scary ones. Someday she’d just run into the woods and explore everything. It would probably be so coo–What the hell was that?

Maddie took a startled step backwards, stumbling over her own feet. She thought she’d seen someone moving through the trees. Suddenly, she was very aware of how dark it was getting, and how far the house was from her current position.

There it was again! 

Okay, she had _definitely_ seen something lurking behind a tree alarmingly near to her. Maddie turned to run back into the house, and a hand latched onto her arm. She screamed as she was yanked back into the tree line.

“Toby!” Maddie shrieked, thrashing out of the person’s grasp. “TOBY HELP!” She started running towards the back door before she was grabbed again, this time around the waist. Toby appeared in the open doorway.

“MADDIE!” He yelled running to her. 

She was thrashing around again, reaching out for him. He grabbed her hand, but just barely, pulling her back towards him. Then seemingly out of nowhere there was another person in a dark cloak going for Toby. He made a slash at Toby’s leg, and her brother went down. He was kneeling in the grass, holding his leg when the cultist pulled something from his pocket and held it over Toby’s nose and mouth. 

Maddie screamed again before the world went black around her.

–

When she opened her eyes again, her head was throbbing and her arms were tied behind her. Toby was right next to her, head drooping over his chest. Maddie used to her foot to kick at his legs, and eventually he opened his eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief.

“Maddie, are you okay?” Toby whispered.

“For now.” Maddie swallowed hard, glancing at the thick chalk lines surrounding them. “Do you think Alcor will be able to find us?”

“I’m sure of it.”

She nodded, still not completely reassured. There were cloaked people milling about just across the basement from her. They had a huge circle drawn with six candles lit. And something told Maddie the knife they were sharpening wasn’t for cutting vegetables for dinner that night.

As she was staring a cultist noticed her, and went over to them. “Welcome back to the world of the living… for now!”

He laughed and Maddie wanted to punch him.

“Alright you two. Up.” He commanded, holding a knife at Maddie’s throat. She bit down a scream, pushing herself up to her feet. Toby followed her lead, flinching when the knife was pressed a little closer to Maddie’s neck.

“Walk. Into the circle. Go.”

Maddie went glancing terrified at Toby. He had much the same expression following her into the summoning circle. Once they were inside, the ropes holding their arms were cut, and Toby pulled Maddie close to him. 

The cultists–there were maybe ten–circled around them and joined hands. The one that had grabbed Toby came forward holding a knife with runes all over the handle. He held it out above his head, and said some weird stuff in what sounded like Latin. The cultists around them began chanting, but all Maddie could watch was the cultist holding the knife. Very suddenly he brought it straight down and the only thought Maddie had was that it was going to hit her. 

But then she wasn’t where she had been and something sickeningly warm splashed across her face. Almost like it was in slow motion, Maddie watched at the cultist pulled the knife out of Toby’s stomach…or the torn hole that _used_ to be his stomach. Maddie screamed as her brother fell. 

His blood spattered across the summoning circle, and all he could do was stare incredulously at his wound. He clapped his hands over his…something… and Maddie rushed to him. She got there just in time to catch his head in her arms. She was crying and probably still screaming, so preoccupied with Toby that she hadn’t noticed who the cult had been chanting for.

Didn’t notice until she felt a very familiar clawed hand on her shoulder. And everything was gray-scale. Toby stopped choking on his own blood, but the wound was still there. As was the blood.

Maddie looked up through blurry tears at Alcor. “Help him.”

“I _c͜a̕͢͏n'̶͡t̴_.” Alcor’s voice cracked. He dropped down next to Maddie, looking Toby up and down. “I _want_ to but I _c͜a̕͢͏n'̶͡t̴_. I’d need his soul, and his soul is the one soul I can never _ever_ take. I–I͜ ̧ça̕n’t do a̷n̷̶͘y̷t͟h͝i̢҉n̛g̡͠ .”

“Dad–”

“Maddie,” Alcor looked up, the bricks melting away to the humanoid face that was so familiar. “Can you give Toby and I a moment?”

She nodded, tearfully hugging Toby one last time. “I love you, Toby.”

“Love you too, Maddie.”

Alcor waited until she had walked a significant enough distance away before taking Toby’s hand in his. He took a breath, looking at the gaping hole in his so–Toby–no, who was he kidding, his _son’s_ stomach.

“Listen, Toby–”

“I bet you’re glad I’m finally dying, huh?” Toby interrupted with a laugh. “Less of a burden on you.”

Dipper’s heart clenched. “You were never a burden.”

“Sure,” Toby scoffed, the slightest bit of left-over blood trickling from his mouth.

“Toby, listen to your father.” Dipper watched as Toby’s eyes widened. Toby deserved the certainty. He was dying, and it wasn’t worth denying anymore. “You were never a burden. You are a good kid. Thank you for watching Maddie and saving her… You didn’t deserve half the shit I put you through–”

“But I used to be–”

“I know, kid.” Dipper ran his hand over Toby’s hair. “And that’s not your fault. Despite all that, you managed to be… _you_. And I guess what I’m trying to say is–if I could save you I would–I͜͢ ̸̕͡c̵̢̛ą̧͢n̵̷͟'̷̛t. And I just… Toby, you’re. I…” Dipper swallowed the lump in his throat. “I love you, Toby. And I’m proud of you.”

“I’m sor–”

“Don’t you dare say you’re sorry.”

Toby managed a weak smile. “Sorry.”

Dipper laughed, but it sounded wrong. “It’s okay.

There was silence as Dipper held the dying kid in his arms. Not a kid anymore, but still too young.

“I-I should go now.”

“Yeah,” Dipper nodded, waving Maddie back over. She ran back, tears and snot trailing down her face. “Goodbye, Toby.”

All he did was smile lightly as Dipper let them slip back into the real world. Toby lost all of the color in his face, and Alcor floated up, bricks reforming across his skin, hands already coated in blood that shouldn’t have been spilled. He felt the air move across his face as he rose, and realized he was crying.

The cultist holding a bloody knife stepped forward. Toby’s blood. “My Lord Alcor, the most fearsome Dreambender, we have a proposition for you.”

Alcor felt a cruel, sick grin spread across his face. “And I have one for you: Make peace with your god.”


End file.
